FVMusicBlog

Photo: Textbook Maneuver

We were lucky enough to catch up with Textbook Maneuver (AKA Michael Keane) following the brilliant release, ‘Adrenaline Slip‘. Enjoy the full interview below.

Hi Michael, thank you for talking with us. ‘Adrenaline Slip’ is such a vivid phrase; what does it mean to you, and how does it capture the emotional arc of the album?

Thank you for the kind words! To me, the phrase is a way to capture the idea of living through the excitement of life, going about all the activities that give you energy, and then, lo and behold, a curve ball gets thrown your way, and everything slips. As I was composing the pieces, I was coming up with phrases that took a turn from the original theme, so I went with them as I feel the creative process has left turns, right turns, etc, and you need to press on. Pretty much as you need to do in life.

You have a background in classical piano and composition—how did those roots shape the way this record came together, especially in such a modern electronic context?

Each song started from a melodic portion or rhythm or set of tones that came out of a spontaneous moment of playing. I had stopped playing music for many years, and as I started to twinkle on the keys, beginning to go back to my old studies, I really tried to use music theory and interesting progressions to build off of those spontaneous moments. In parallel to dusting off my skills, I started taking courses in electronic music as I had no experience in using software to build, record and shape music. Those courses opened up a Pandora’s box of possibilities, and the ideas just really started to flow.

The album was built from improvisational sessions. What does that creative process look like for you—are you recording everything live and refining it later or composing in real-time?

I will sit at the piano and practice, doing scales, learning a composition or a chord progression I hear in another artist’s song that allows me to expand my skills. During these times, I often begin to noodle around and improvise. I’ll do the same thing on a synthesizer I am learning, and these two activities eventually lead to a run or motif that strikes me emotionally. I then begin to construct themes and sections around that original section. Song titles come into my mind, and many times, those titles change or become a phrase that strikes an idea, and then I mould the structure, tones, etc, around that new idea. So, it is a process that usually takes several days or weeks to complete one song idea. If I get stuck, I write out the main themes, go back to the piano and grow the new ideas based on theory and how they sound acoustically. I save versions along the way, bounce close to final versions to mp3s, spend a few days listening in different settings, on different speakers and then go back and tweak until I feel the song is fully formed and sounds good to me.

The four-part Space Trip suite is clearly a centrepiece. What drew you to the story of those astronauts, and how did their experience influence your approach musically and emotionally?

I grew up in the 70s; Star Wars was everywhere, video games often times had space themes, and NASA and other countries’ space programs were frequently on the news. There have been tragic disasters along the way, but the programs push on. So late last year, we started to learn about the delay in returning home, and I was following the story as I was writing one of the first songs I composed for the album, which became “Tell Them I’m Not Here (Still In Outerspace)”. I then heard about the spacewalk that was achieved during the extended stay, and that led to “Spacewalks”. I decided to learn a bit more about what are the stages of space travel when returning to Earth and re-entry and a controlled landing are two key milestones. I decided to compose songs based on those ideas, re-entering the atmosphere, which is a critical point and then the idea of a controlled landing and how that must feel. I had noticed I was using some subtle but repeated ideas and then made the decision to call it a suite, which I refer to as Space Trip. I was really trying to capture the mixed emotions of what it must feel like to know you are delayed in getting home, but you are, at the same time, doing what you love and moving scientific knowledge along.

“Tell Them I’m Not Here (Still in Outerspace)” has already connected with a lot of people. Why do you think that track, in particular, is resonating?

I have been told it is a grower. It is a longer piece and slow to evolve, but upon repeat listens, different musical ideas or tones get noticed. I also worked on a video to capture what I was feeling while reading the news, composing, etc. In addition, there is something to be said about active and passive listening. I think this song works for both those situations, which I am glad I achieved as that is how I also listen to music. Many times, it is passive, on in the background or while driving. Other times, I am listening intently, almost studying the music or, on other occasions, just getting lost in the sounds as I listen.

You’ve described the ‘Murmur’ pieces as “meditative bridges.” What role do they play structurally—and how do they reflect your broader artistic vision for the project?

Each of the “Murmur” pieces was fully formed relatively quickly, and there are certain aspects around the structure of each that are similar. One of them led me to keep hearing the word “murmur” as I was writing it; not sure why, but I went with it. I am a fan of all types of music, but with progressive albums created with intended themes, there are often segues or interludes, so I decided since I have this Space Trip suite, how about if I take these Murmur songs and use them to break up the album into sections. I have a few other songs in the works in a similar situation; they came together fairly quickly and are shorter but with interesting phrases, so I will be continuing to release “murmurs” on future albums.

There’s a strong cinematic quality running through the whole album. Are there any specific films, directors, or soundtracks that inspire your work?

I really enjoy the movies of Stanley Kubrick, and music plays such an important role in his films. I also really enjoy the soundtracks that Trent Reznor has been composing. The music from The Social Network was amazing, with really great tones and pacing. One of the courses I was taking focussed on composing for film, so I learned quite a bit during that class, which I was taking while writing music for this album.

A lot of artists struggle to balance introspection and accessibility. ‘Adrenaline Slip’ feels deeply personal but still expansive and open. Was that intentional?

Absolutely, I love music that takes me on a journey, and that is what I was trying to do with these songs. I put out music under different project names, so for everything as Textbook Maneuver, II made the decision that the songs need to journey, designed with headphone wearers in mind but also allow for the songs to work well in a group setting.

If someone’s about to listen to this album for the first time, what’s the ideal setting? Headphones? Driving alone at night? Total darkness?

All of those would work. I recommend listening in different settings; I would not be surprised if different nuances get picked up based on the setting and also what the listener is feeling prior to hitting play.

This is just your debut, but it’s incredibly cohesive and confident. Where do you see Textbook Maneuver going next—are you already thinking about the follow-up?

Thank you again for such kind words; I am so thrilled it landed nicely with you. I already have new songs for Textbook Maneuver in the works. I would love to work on songs for film or TV, video games or animation. I also have other music written which do not fit in the Textbook Maneuver style, so I will be putting those out under different names. I have acoustic works I will be releasing under my own name. This is only the beginning, but I am so grateful I now have the time and energy to create the music. I started much later in life on this than many musical artists do, but I am really enjoying it and love that this modern age has removed all of the friction in getting music out to the masses.

https://textbookmaneuver.bandcamp.com/album/adrenaline-slip
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php
https://textbookmaneuver.bandcamp.com
https://www.youtube.com/@LSR_24
https://www.instagram.com/lifesciencerecords/reels/

FVMusicBlog June 2025

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